Translated with DeepL
I spend six hours on phone calls today. Actually, a little by accident.
In the morning I still have no connection. There is none at Fønhuskoia, so I enjoy the peace and quiet. I write a lot and enjoy the sun. During the day, you can also use the outdoor area of the hut, where the mosquitoes finally stay away. I am slow this morning, and it takes me a long time to get ready to leave the hut: it has its advantages to have only one pot in the tent that I can make dirty - here I have four pots and plates each, plus several cups that all have to be washed. The disadvantage of having the whole hut to myself is that I also have to clean it myself. With the combination of enjoyment and cleaning, I don’t leave until 2 pm.
When I have a connection, I call David. David studied biology like me and had very similar interests. I had noticed his name during my corona studies in many Zoom meetings, for example master’s lectures on neuroscience and as a maths tutor. I then wrote to him at some point and we became friends, initially via Zoom, and learned together. He is currently completing his master’s degree in AI. He has similar ambitions to mine, but is more confident in them. We often despair and fail at similar things - at least when I was still in my previous life as a neuroscientist. We talked on the phone every week for a while, supporting each other in our work, but now we haven’t heard from each other since the beginning of my journey. So I spend three hours on the phone with David. When we last met, it was still completely unclear how my life would continue after I had abandoned my doctoral thesis. It is nice to see how he is now looking forward to how I will find my way. He is also finding his way, which pleases me, even if it is in a completely different way.
I arrive at my sleeping place in Ål, where I have already stayed once before. I wash in the river and eat leftovers. Then I knock on Ingrid’s door, who had brought me a beer and wonderful company on my last visit. Unfortunately, she is not at home this time.
Back at my sleeping place, I have to fight even more mosquitoes than last time. I put up my tent with a full face veil and make myself some ramen noodles. In the meantime, I phone my parents, who haven’t heard from me for a few days.
My grandmother is always happy to point out to me that this long international phone call is really only possible and natural for our generation. She likes to tell me about the phone bills that my aunt used to rack up with calls to France. I am very grateful that it is now so easy and free to do so. But sometimes I am glad when, for example, I am unable to get a connection and am forced not to call somewhere else. But above all, I can always take a piece of home and community with me on my journey.
I also seek this feeling for a short while when I call Tobias in the evening. I just want to wish him a good night. Two hours later, we almost fall asleep together. I just manage to connect my phone to the battery before I fade away.
